There has been plenty of hype on the all-new 2017 Ford Raptor, but we found the first one turned into a luxury prerunner. At the Ford booth, Brad DeBerti displayed his Raptor Prerunner that he built for the show.

The truck which had 32 miles on it when it was received, had been cut and fabricated into a one of a kinda prerunner. We had a chance to catch up with Brad and get the inside scoop. “The hard thing about this truck was that nothing was created,” Brad explained. “We had to create everything from the fenders to the wheel hubs.”

Innova 17-inch wheels and 39-inch BFGoodrich Baja T/A allow this prerunner to be ready for any terrain while the KC lights allow the night to turn to day.
CAD was used a lot during the build to stretch the fenders and to design the cage. “Everything changes in the design process,” Brad continued. “The fender vents and the pieces on the rear fenders to keep all the body lines were all 3D printed.”

With a busy schedule and only six weeks to build the truck, Brad and his team had to build the truck on weeks between races. Travel time to and from the Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Series and the Regional Series meant that was time away from the build.

It may be hard to cut up a vehicle, but it is even harder to do knowing that you have one of the first 2017 Raptors out. The crew pulled the bed off the truck and cut the frame off from the cab back and a new tube frame was created. “With the four-link, back-half, and the front long travel done I decided to do a cut cab with three Kicker 12-inch subs,” Brad said. “I wanted to do something different. I have never seen a prerunner with a cool system like this.”

One thing you do not see everyday in a prerunner is a stereo system with three 12-inch subs.

One of the coolest features on the truck is out back. “A lot of prerunners when you get two tires side-by-side the bedsides have to bow for clearance,” Brad explained. “To keep all the body lines straight and to make it as factory as possible, the front of the bedsides were mounted on nylon washers which with a pull of the rear pins the bedside rotates out.”

The outside of the truck may look decked out, but the inside is tricked out just the same. “The truck is still loaded with the factory dash, headliner, and seats,” Brad said. “I ordered two more front seats as well as another center console to add in the rear. With that, all the seats now have heated seats making it a true luxury prerunner.”

The truck may look good inside and out, but it is just as functional with massive wheel travel and a full working interior.
The truck cycles 19 inches of wheel travel up front and the rear of the truck cycles 30 inches while maintaining four-wheel-drive. Normally, when cutting up a truck like this there is an issue with warning lights on the dash. This truck has no lights, includes working ABS, and starts right up.

This luxury 2017 Ford Raptor prerunner may look good on the show floor, but it will see time out in Pismo Beach, California. This is definitely one truck that will drive just as well as it looks.